India in its bid to meet its international obligations with regard to the protection of the environment and human health approved the Ratification of seven chemicals listed under the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) which causes cancer, damage to the central & peripheral nervous systems, diseases of the immune system.
“The Stockholm Convention is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from POPs, which are identified chemical substances that persist in the environment, bio-accumulate in living organisms, adversely affect human health/ environment and have the property of long-range environmental transport (LRET). Exposure to POPs can lead to cancer, damage to central & peripheral nervous systems, diseases of the immune system, reproductive disorders, and interference with normal infant and child development,” stated a press release.
The decision was taken in a Union Cabinet meeting chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi.The Cabinet further delegated its powers to ratify chemicals under the Stockholm Convention to Union Ministers of External Affairs (MEA) and Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MEFCC) in respect of POPs already regulated under the domestic regulations thereby streamlining the procedure.
On January 13, 2006, India had ratified the Stockholm Convention which enabled it to keep itself in a default “opt-out” position such that amendments in various Annexes of the convention cannot be enforced on it unless an instrument of ratification/ acceptance/ approval or accession is explicitly deposited with UN depositary.
India already on March 5, 2018 had notified the ‘Regulation of Persistent Organic Pollutants Rules by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) which prohibits the manufacture, trade, use, import and export of seven chemicals namely Chlordecone, Hexabromobiphenyl, Hexabromodiphenyl ether and Heptabromodiphenylether (Commercial octa-BDE), Tetrabromodiphenyl ether and Pentabromodiphenyl ether (Commercial penta-BDE), Pentachlorobenzene, Hexabromocyclododecane, and Hexachlorobutadiene which were already listed as POPs under Stockholm Convention.
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